Do Kwon Will Be Extradited to South Korea, Rules Montenegro’s Appeals Court

The Appellate Court of Montenegro has ruled that Do Kwon should be extradited to South Korea because their request came in earlier than the one from the U.S.

An end to the saga of Do Kwon’s extradition proceedings may have finally come, as the Court of Appeal of Montenegro handed down a decision earlier this week.

In a August 1 ruling, the appeals court found that Do Kown, former CEO of Terraform Labs, should be extradited to his native country of South Korea. In doing so, the court rejected an extradition request for Kwon from the U.S., saying that preference would be granted to South Korea because it was the first country to request his extradition.

“There was no appeal against the aforementioned decision, so the decision of the Higher Court in Podgorica, which permitted expedited extradition based on the request of the Republic of Korea, has become final,” read the ruling, meaning there is a good chance this decision will be final.

While Kwon faces charges in both countries, many believe that the punishment for his crimes will be far less severe if he is tried in South Korea. 

“It seems a bit ridiculous for the Montenegro court to extradite Do Kwon to South Korea, where he might get acquitted or a comically light sentence as opposed to the United States,” Terrence Yang, managing director at Swan Bitcoin, told Bloomberg in March.

Even Kwon seems to share the opinion that an extradition to South Korea might lead to a more lenient sentence. His legal counsel have also indicated a preference for being extradited to South Korea over the U.S.

Earlier this year, local media outlet Vijesti reported that Montenegro’s Prime Minister Milojko Spajic had personally invested in Terraform Labs in 2018, citing court documents from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Spajic reportedly acquired 750,000 LUNA at a price of $0.10 per token before he took office. At one point, the value of his LUNA holdings stood at $90 million. 

It is unclear whether Spajic has any ties to Kwon, and whether that influenced Kwon’s decision to travel to Montenegro, where he was arrested in March 2023.